Letters
by Galorya
Summary: A chance meeting in the forest sparks a series of correspondence between an apprentice still learning his trade and a good honest country girl.
1. Prologue, Part I

Kit had absolutely no idea what he was doing or even why he was doing it. The small piece of parchment in his coat pocket seemed to be growing heavier and heavier the deeper he got into the forest. His nerves seemed to be getting the best of him, as he more than once thought of just turning back and rejoining the hunt. After all, this plan could not possibly work. It was foolish.

This plan, you might ask, dear reader, involved a brief letter addressed to an honest country girl. This letter was written in the hopes of reconnecting with the girl, and perhaps seeing her again. Kit mentally slapped himself for actually writing it, though. He had done it without even thinking how it was even going to be delivered; he didn't know who to address it to, for one. In truth, his plan had many, many faults; but while it had its faults, Kit couldn't help but feel even the slightest bit of optimism.

It had all started with a boring lesson on the proper etiquette of… well Kit couldn't quite remember. Something, or rather, _someone_ else was on his mind at that very moment in time.

It had been exactly one week since his chance encounter with the wonderful girl in the forest, and through that entire week, she had been on his mind, occupying his every thought. He knew he was going mad. There was no question as to whether or not he wanted to see her again. There was of course the chance that he would see her at the ball, thanks to the now extended invitation to the entire kingdom, courtesy of his father, but the proclamation of the actual ball would not be made for another two weeks or so, or until that blasted painting was finished.

Kit's impatience was growing absolutely intolerable at times. To himself most of all. He couldn't understand why a girl he'd only met once in the forest for a brief time had been able to have such an effect on his mind. It was as if she'd put him under some sort of spell. Kit had met many other girls before, but none of them had ever sparked his interest in the way _she_ had. Her goodness, and her spirit, had stood out so much from the rest, and no girl had ever been so courageous enough to talk to him in the way that she had; like a _human being_. She was truly amazing. He had to see her again, and he wasn't entirely sure he could wait until the ball.

"Are you even listening to me, boy?"

Kit startled at the booming sound of the Grand Duke's voice. The Prince had failed to notice the man even come into the room. He had already tuned out the instructor, who was slightly peeved at being interrupted in the middle of a lesson.

Kit smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, Grand Duke. I was distracted. Please, continue."

The Grand Duke, not pleased at all with the Prince's lack of attention span, gave an exasperated sigh, accompanied by a roll of the eyes. "I simply came to remind you of your task for today's hunt."

Kit immediately straightened in his chair, be it from being uncomfortable or interested, he wasn't sure. He nodded, cueing the Grand Duke to elaborate.

"It would be of the kingdom's best interest of you actually returned with a kill today," the man added, his voice stern and scolding. "It wouldn't do well for the royal court to go another week without."

Kit felt his jaw clench in pure irritation. "Very well." This was not the first time the Grand Duke had come in with such statements, either.

The older man gave a more than skeptical look before finally leaving the room. Kit was more than positive that the Grand Duke had not only come in to make the point of the importance of having a successful hunt, but also the importance of not getting off track from the task. It was no secret that the man disapproved of Kit's infatuation with the girl from the forest, and he had made a point to remind the Prince as often as he could.

The well-being of the kingdom was on the Grand Duke's mind. The well-being of Kit's heart however, was not. It boggled Kit to think that it was so important for him to marry royalty and not a commoner. A good honest country girl could bring more to the table than any other princess his father or the Grand Duke wanted him to marry. _She_ wasn't just any girl he'd met. The only way to ease the chaos that was currently Kit's mind was to see the girl again.

Kit had realized that the instructor was talking once again. He mentally scolded himself for tuning out the lesson a second time, but in all honesty, he could not help it.

"...and if you find that you simply cannot meet the other person's requests in any way, such as arriving on time, or arriving at all, you must write a letter of correspondence."

_Write a letter._ That was it! That was the key to seeing the girl again!

Half an hour later, Kit was in his chambers, hastily searching through his desk for something to write on and with. His face lit up as he pulled both a parchment paper and quill pen from the drawer. Nearly throwing himself onto the chair, he began to write. Or rather, tried to write. In his excitement, he failed to realize just how difficult this would be. To start, who was he to address this to?

The Girl in the Forest? No.

The Lady of the Woods? No, that sounded too pretentious.

Girl I Met Last Week? Definitely not.

Kit didn't even have a name. Adding to that, he had no idea where this girl lived. He decided that the name would have to come later, as would the address. What was important, was that he write down what he felt and what he wished to say.

* * *

And so, here Kit was. Deep in the forest, separated once again from the actual hunt, a small, folded piece of parchment burning a hole in his coat pocket. He slowed his horse down to a trot, then to a light walk, as he neared the small clearing of trees. His hand unconsciously moved to his breast pocket, as if guarding the letter. The original plan was to somehow, get the letter sent through the post, but after some thought, that idea was impossible. Kit had come to the conclusion that there was no way he could get the letter to the girl through any normal means.

After hours of thought, Kit finally knew just how he would do it. This plan of his could go terribly wrong, but there was also the chance that it could go wonderfully right.

He would go to where they had first met.

Though now that he was here, the task at hand seemed slightly more daunting. How was he to know that the girl would come through this exact place again? And how was he to know that someone else would pick the letter up? In truth, reader, Kit was afraid.

But Kit decided he would put that fear aside. If he wanted any contact with the girl at all, this is what he would have to do. He brought his horse to a stop and dismounted, landing lightly on the forest floor. Scanning the surrounding wooded area, he slowly pulled the folded parchment from his pocket, being careful not to rip or bend any part of the letter.

A small but warm smile formed on his face as he held the letter in his hand. He once again surveyed the area, looking for a suitable place for the paper. His smile grew as his gaze landed on a small crevice in the side of the biggest tree. The leaves on the forest floor crunched as he made his way over. After one more look at the letter, he carefully nestled it in the tree. The edge of the parchment barely poked through, but was just enough so that it wasn't stuck.

Though this placement may not have been the most practical in the world, Kit was pleased. In one week's time, he would return to hopefully see a response.

With a smile stretching from ear to ear, Kit mounted his horse and rode back to join the rest of his company, leaving part of himself behind in the forest.


	2. Prologue, Part II

For the first time that day, Ella smiled. Of course, some small, almost accidental grins had made their appearance, but this was a real smile; a true expression of happiness and contentment. The way the sunlight danced happily on the forest floor, the way the butterflies and birds fluttered on the breeze, and even the way the gentle chill of the wind caressed her face; all of these things made her truly happy. The lively step her dappled grey horse, Major, possessed and the sound of birds twittering in the trees above helped to brighten her spirit. It wasn't entirely uncommon now to see Ella riding through the forest. She found it to be quite therapeutic in times of great stress; and lately, her stepmother and stepsisters had been making it increasingly difficult for Ella to maintain her positivism and hopefulness. It seemed that every action they made against her was used as a means to slowly eat away at her spirit. And as of late, they had been getting closer and closer to actually achieving their goal.

But when Ella would start to feel the emotional wear and tear of living with these women, she would remember what her mother had made her promise; to have courage and be kind. Having courage would mean persevering through the difficult times; Ella would have every chance to leave her home and escape, but she was strong, and would not leave her beloved family home in the care of those women.

Ella's mistreatment at the hands of her stepfamily slowly worsened as the days went on. It had started with all of the household chores being placed under Ella's responsibility. At first, they had claimed that these tasks were merely distractions, and Ella took to them without any hesitation, for her grief after her father's death needed some form of an outlet. As time passed, however, the workload became heavier, and the words spoken grew to be more biting and cruel. They would shorten the already cruel nickname of _Cinderella_ to _Cinders_ or _Cindy. Ella _was no longer a part of her identity to them.

Still, no matter how cruel her stepfamily was to her, Ella would still treat them with nothing but kindness; she would treat them as if they were her real family. It was their lack of familial affection that discouraged Ella, though. She was quick to, in a way, write off their actions against her. For instance, her meeting in the forest with the handsome apprentice. "They treat me as well as they are able," and "It isn't so bad. I'm sure others have it worse," were among the defenses she had said at the time. It was important, at least to her, to in no way speak ill of her family members, be they by marriage or by blood.

It was a truth Ella had come to know in the time of both of her parents' deaths; family in any way, shape, or form, was precious.

In the times of great emotional stress, Ella had taken to riding through the forest on her way back from the market. Yes, it was a little out of her way, but it was well worth it. The peace and overall beauty of the woods were always able to put Ella's mind at ease. However, there were other, more recently developed, motives for her brief ventures through the forest. It would be a lie if she were to say the serenity the woods provided would be the only reason for her visits. There was a small part of her that hoped she would by chance run into the apprentice Kit again on one of his hunts.

Well, a girl can dream can't she?

Perhaps Ella had been thinking too much of the young man. After all, he was the first male to actually _talk_ to her. She had of course met other young gentlemen and held, well somewhat, conversations with them in her trips to the marketplace, but they all seemed to take on the same disposition when speaking with her; a slightly condescending smirk accompanied by honeyed words. When she was younger, she had only taken this interaction between men and women as acts of kindness.

This interaction was actually called flirting. She had constantly heard from her stepsisters of their communication and relations with various men. In fact, most of what she actually learned of the natures of men, other than her own father of course, came from Anastasia and Drizella. Her stepsisters would incessantly say that "all men are fools," before crediting their dear mother on those wise words.

Not _all _men were fools, though. Her father was certainly _not_ a fool in the slightest; he was a brilliant man, and in Ella's interaction with Kit the Apprentice, she had realized that Anastasia and Drizella had never been more wrong.

Ella would be lying if she denied her wishes to see the apprentice again. She yearned for a chance to talk with him once more; a chance to sit with him and learn about his life was what she really wanted. Though in her heart she knew the consequences that would come with her stepmother learning of Kit's existence and association with Ella. That was the catch. She would have to be careful with her possible meetings with the young man. It was clear that any shred of happiness she could gather could easily be taken away. It had to be a secret.

And so this secret was the reason that Ella would, twice a week on the way from her trips to the market, take a more scenic route home through the forest.

Ella had just come upon the very same clearing of trees where she met the apprentice. The butterflies in her stomach fluttered giddily as she remembered their encounter. She smiled softly at the fond not-so-distant memory. There was a small part of her that wished she would hear the bugle of the hunters in the distance. Seeing the hunters would mean seeing her friend again. In truth, Ella was slightly puzzled at what exactly her feelings meant. She hadn't ever really felt this way about any man before, and after only meeting him once, the strange feelings were even more confusing.

Ella took the opportunity of the peaceful ambiance to allow both herself and her horse a break before heading the rest of the way home. Her feet landed gracefully on the soft forest floor as she dismounted. Some time to relax before facing her stepfamily at home was very much needed. A laugh escaped her as she felt Major playfully nudge her.

"All right, you silly horse!" Ella exclaimed, before reaching into her back and retrieving a carrot. "Thank you for being so patient with me."

Major munched happily on his treat, giving a satisfied nicker as an expression of gratitude. Ella chuckled, shaking her head slightly before taking a seat at the base of the tree.

Though as Ella sat, she noticed something that had not been present before in all of her other visits. There seemed to be a folded piece of parchment stuck into the side of the tree, the point sticking out ever so slightly. Curiosity got the best of Ella as she reached out to grasp the paper. It obviously wasn't lodged in there forever, as it moved freely at her touch. What was pulled from the tree appeared to be a note or letter of some sorts, though there was no telling who it was for. There was no name on the cover, nor was there any insignia saying where the paper was from. Ella knew it wasn't necessarily morally right to read someone else's personal letter, but once again, she was very curious, and if it wasn't of any importance to her, she would immediately return it where it was found.

Glancing around the clearing, making sure there were no other souls around, she decided to open it.

The very first word made her heart skip a beat.

* * *

"_30th of March_

_My Mysterious Maiden,_

_It has been a little over a week since we met. I suppose I should begin by asking; how are you? How are the living conditions in your home with your people? These questions have been troubling me for some time. I only hope you are doing well and that you are treated right. I suppose that now I should actually get to elaborating on the exact reasoning for writing this letter._

_I do not entirely know what exactly it is that I want to say or write or even where to start. This has proven to be more difficult than I had originally anticipated! You know, it was ambitious of me enough trying to decide on how to address this, and even that didn't come out quite how I wanted to. However, I do know that writing this letter has to help in some way. How else was I supposed to get a hold of you? You aren't exactly the easiest girl to track down, you know. _

_Though this is quite difficult, I will admit that you have been in my thoughts since first we met, and I have spent many an hour agonizing over how to see you again. And so, here I sit, writing this letter to a wonderful girl who may possibly never receive it. Obviously, I am willing to take that chance. _

_I wish to see you again, miss, and if that means writing letters until I actually find you, then so be it! It will be done! But before I can find you, I must learn your name, as I was too forgetful to ask for it when we met. How can we communicate if I don't even know what to call you? _

_This might be rather naive of me, writing this letter to a girl whose name I don't even know, but I hope that you find this somehow and I hope that you feel the same. _

_Yours,_

_Kit _"

* * *

Ella could hardly contain herself; she felt her cheeks grow warm as she read through the letter, utterly charmed by the apprentice's words. The smile that spread across her face was not controlled by her. It was wonderfully endearing how much his nerves were masked by the formal tone of the letter. She had even giggled at the use of "My Mysterious Maiden," as cliche as it was.

This was truly a sign! She was to see him again!

In her excitement, Ella neglected to recognize the complications of actually seeing him. Her smile faltered slightly as the realization dawned on her; seeing him was not as easy as it sounded. For one, there would be no way for her to actually go to the castle, and Kit could certainly not come to her home. With her current situation at home, seeing him again would only make things more difficult for the both of them. Meeting again face-to-face would have to wait. The secret correspondence of letters would be easily hidden.

Yes, writing letters would have to do.

The excitement once again returned to Ella as she thought of how wonderful this was. "This," being that she finally had communication with the young apprentice from the castle. With a sigh of pure happiness, Ella tucked the precious letter neatly into her satchel pocket.

Ella rode home that day, smiling the brightest and happiest she had smiled in a long, long time.


	3. Chapter One

_3rd of April_

Dear Mr. Kit,

It is so wonderful to hear from you! Words cannot express how happy I was when I received your letter. It meant a great deal to me. I positively adore the title of, "Mysterious Maiden." What a charming notion! I'm really not much of a mystery. If I were to be completely honest, I'm quite simple.

I am happy to say that I am doing fairly well. To tell the truth, life doesn't get very exciting in my home. At least not nearly as exciting as I imagine living in the castle would be! I have never been there of course, so I wouldn't know. Is living in the castle as wonderful as I'd imagine it to be? You must never be bored! That reminds me; you told me when we first met that you were an apprentice of a sort. I must ask, how is that going? I feel like such a fool for not asking when we met, but what is your father's trade? I do apologize for asking so many questions, but you must understand, I don't really have chances to interact with people outside of my home.

To be completely honest with you, it would make me positively elated to see you again! However, I fear that meeting in person will not benefit our cause. It would only complicate things further and would have the potential to change everything. For now, writing will have to be our main form of communication, but as long as we are able to speak with one another, I will be happy. I sincerely hope that we can maintain contact.

Yours,

The Mysterious Maiden

P.S. I would like to know the fate of the stag that brought us together. Would you happen to know?

* * *

_10th of April_

My Dear Maiden,

It took a great deal of time for me to actually write something down in this letter, my dear, but here it goes!

There are no words to exactly convey to you just how ecstatic I was to receive your response. To tell the truth, I felt like my actions were just based off of naive and wishful thinking. It fills my heart with joy to read that you wish to continue communication with me! It isn't everyday that you meet someone who shares so many similar views. As for, "The Mysterious Maiden," what do you expect when I don't even know your name? I had to think of something! The title currently suits you rather well, as I don't actually know that much about you. And you are also a girl (a very beautiful one, I might add.)

I think you are much too modest, though. In our short time together, and a dance involving two high-strung horses, I could see that you were no simple maiden. You are so very far from simple. There is so much more to you, and I wish to know every bit of knowledge that I can!

I am very glad to read that you are well. Contrary to popular belief, the castle isn't all that exciting. Yes, I can probably say that because I live here, but in truth, it can get dreadfully dull at times. I work and train excessively every day, as well as having to sit through various lessons on my apprenticeship. I am constantly coming face-to-face with certain expectations on how to act, dress, and even eat. I am always expected to do "what's done." Your words when we met really struck a chord though, to be honest. I'm not afraid to admit that I used it to make a point. It can get rather tedious at times; living in the castle and the apprenticeship, I mean. Writing this letter to you and being able to write my thoughts down has been the greatest form of stress relief. I can't really say those feelings about my apprenticeship outloud. See? Already you have helped me in ways no one in this kingdom has.

I feel as though I have said too much. How is your home life? When we first met you said that your people only treat you as well as they are able. I would be lying if I were to say that this fact didn't worry me. Has it gotten any better since we last spoke? I would hate for you to be in any hostile environment. You certainly don't deserve it.

It saddens me that we will not meet again in person for a while, but I will be perfectly content with writing to you. Any contact with you, whatever form it may be, is perfect. However, I will continue to hang on the thread of hope that we will meet in the future.

I hope to hear from you again soon.

Yours,

Kit

P.S. The stag is alive and well. He was far too clever for our hunters. Don't worry, I made sure.

* * *

_18th of April_

Dear Mr. Kit,

You really are much too kind, Mr. Kit. I too feel that our meeting in the forest had significance. Ceasing to interact with one another would be mad! A connection like that is hard to come by.

I am sorry to hear that life can still be challenging living in such a lavish and beautiful home. It really isn't entirely different from life in the village. However, I am glad that I am able to be someone for you to vent to. I am familiar with the concept of keeping emotions hidden. I am glad to help, and am here to listen (or well… read) about any troubles you may have. It is important to Though I do feel that you will be able to overcome any task your apprenticeship passes your way. Just remember, it will all be worth it in the end. Times may be difficult, but with a little courage and kindness, you can achieve anything. Oh dear, I seem to have gotten rather sappy, haven't I? Do forgive me.

Well, I live with my stepmother and stepsisters, and they are all admirable in certain ways. Anastasia is so confident and outgoing, and Drizella is improving her harpsichord playing and singing skills. My stepmother loves her daughters very much; they are her pride and joy. As I said before, my people treat me as well as they are able. My life isn't all that horrible though. Others have it much, much worse than I. I have a place to sleep, and a roof over my head. I just do whatever I can to help make things easier on my family and if that means taking on one or two small household chores, than so be it.

Write back soon! I have been enjoying our (albeit short) correspondence!

Sincerely Yours,

The Mysterious Maiden

* * *

Ella found the last paragraph of her letter to be the most difficult to write. An internal struggle practically tore her apart; would she include more detail of her daily life, or just simplify it? Worrying Kit so early in their contact would not be a good idea, so writing the situation off as not a big deal was what she did. In a way, Ella was almost embarrassed to trouble Kit with such trivial issues. Her life wasn't that bad, at least through her eyes. Any outsider would say otherwise. She also wasn't exactly sure bringing her birth parents into this was the best way to go about things. Her whole speech on getting through hard times was enough emotion for one letter.

And so, Ella neatly folded the newly written letter and tucked it under the worn mattress, eager to deliver it come morning.

* * *

**Author's Note: ****I am SOOOOOO Sorry for how late this is. It's been really hectic these past two months, and I've only just found time this week to write. Please forgive my lateness!**


End file.
